Photo by Mohammad Metri on Unsplash

Why podcasts?

As with choosing felting for my free inquiry,  choosing podcasts for my education/technology inquiry took some time. I was also interested in news sources in the classroom (how do students access news? do teachers use tech to introduce news items?) and how tech is used throughout the school in the youth climate strike movement (to make posters, to share information, etc.). Part of any creative or academic work, though, involves making choices, and specifically making choices around scope. I think that exploring podcasts in the secondary school classroom has the right amount of scope.

I listen to podcasts at least every week, for information or for pleasure, and I already have some questions brewing. Which brings me to…

What are my initial questions about podcasts in relation to education?

Drawing again on this resource from Pacific School of Inquiry and Innovation, here are some initial questions, based on my curiousity and interest:

  • How do we define ‘podcast’?
  • How are teachers already using podcasts in secondary school classrooms?
  • How are young people engaging with podcasts?
  • Where do I see possibilities for using podcasts to support students in line with the BC curriculum?

Where to next?

I think my first step is answering that first question. It will likely lead me down a little rabbit hole into the history of podcasts and the relationship of podcasts to radio. I welcome it all! I might also slip in questions to teachers and young people to start answering the next two questions, if I remember.

Bonus reflections on the process of inquiry-based learning and using an e-portfolio

  • Choosing topics has been really hard for me. I have a lot of ideas for possible inquiries, and questions about whether I should delve into them here or in other classes. I think I could have used more scaffolding, or more 1:1 support from my instructor. On the other hand, maybe the struggle is part of the process.
  • Getting started in intimidating, but once I do it, I feel good. Seriously. I feel much better with these first couple of posts done.
  • I think I need a page for resources. For example, Unsplash is awesome for free, no-attribution-required photos (so good that I included an attribution above anyway!) I’d like to put that resources somewhere. Ditto for the PSII inquiry-based learning fillable guide.
  • Digital stuff feels messy. Maybe it’s because I am getting old? Having instructors using Coursespaces, Google Classroom, AND websites, all in different places, feels a bit much. Having to hunt for resources or course outlines is annoying. Just finding my own website took a while this afternoon, before I remembered that I had saved the link in an email draft. Ugh. Transition, learning, figuring out systems. Plus, September, “the fragile season.”